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Joel Embiid isn't having fun this season.
- The Philadelphia 76ers have lost four straight and are sixth in the Eastern Conference at 31-21.
- Team morale seems to be getting dangerously low, with Joel Embiid frustrated with a lack of touches and inconsistency on offense, Ben Simmons calling the team soft, and Al Horford alluding to issues being handled internally.
- The Sixers didn't make any major moves at the trade deadline, meaning this talented but imperfect group is going to have to figure it out on their own over the final 30 games.
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The Philadelphia 76ers rank as one of the most disappointing teams of the 2019-20 season.
Considered a title contender entering the season, the re-loaded Sixers instead are 31-21, losers of four straight and five of their last seven. After beginning the season 5-0, they're just 26-21 since, with many ups and downs.
After losing to the league-leading Milwaukee Bucks, 112-101, on Thursday, the Sixers are now just 9-19 on the road, which stands in stark contrast to their 22-2 home record.
The Sixers always figured to be a somewhat puzzling team, with a starting five high on talent, but low on shooting. Many in the NBA world thought that with the size and versatility to hound teams on defense and present physical mismatches all over the floor, they could get enough juice out of their offense to beat opponents. That hasn't been the case.
After Thursday's loss, the crew on TNT's "Inside the NBA" ripped the Sixers.
"You know, I picked the Sixers to get to the Finals," Charles Barkley said. "I think they are the softest, mentally weakest team that had a bunch of talent. They are the Cleveland Browns of the NBA. They got a lot of talent, and they talk the talk, and that's it."
"The reason why Milwaukee's playing well, the guys can play, but when they see their leader come out and play hard, they're going to play hard," Shaquille O'Neal said. "If you're lollygagging on the court and you're not rotating, the others ain't going to play hard. So, Ben and Embiid, they just got to play. I don't care if they don't like each other; you just got to play when you're on the court."
It's not a crisis yet, but one only needs to watch and listen to the Sixers discuss their play to understand the season has become a slog.
Joel Embiid is not having fun, and it's a concern
Joel Embiid, who recently returned from a dislocated finger that required hand surgery, shot just 6-26, 3-10 from three, for 19 points in Thursday's loss. After the game, he repeated what he's said all season - he's trying to get back to having fun.
"I'm trying to get back to the fun Joel," he told reporters after the game (via Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer). "Smile a little more. The whole season, I kind of told myself I was going to be serious. I felt like everybody just looked at it in a way that I'm moody or I do not care. I do.
"I want to win. But at the same time, I try to have a different attitude. Obviously, it hasn't been working. So I have to go back to that fun Joel."
This season has featured a series of concerning quotes from Embiid. Earlier in the week, Embiid said the team lacked an offensive identity and seemed to take issue with the way they play.
"Spacing is an issue. Sometimes we play fast, sometimes we play slow," Embiid said (via Kyle Neubeck of Philly Voice).
Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Joel Embiid.
"From time-to-time, I got to spend a lot of time at the three-point line just to make sure there's some spacing. Everybody keeps saying, 'Get in the post!' but if you actually understand basketball, you've got to find that balance."
He also suggested the coaches could do a better job finding consistency.
"Like I said, from time to time you don't know what you're getting. I don't know going into the game if I'm getting the ball or not, but that should never affect anything ... We still got to do our job, even if it's not getting the ball some nights, you still got to go hard."
After a loss to the Heat in December, Embiid criticized the team for not executing their game plan against a zone defense.
"In the first half, I don't even remember myself being in any action or getting the ball, so they kind of - I mean it was in the scouting report, we knew they were going to do it, we were prepared for it, I guess we didn't act on it or do what we talked about," Embiid said then.
There have been other ominous quotes from the team. Ben Simmons called the team "soft" after a loss to the Miami Heat on Monday.
Head coach Brett Brown said it was "a concern" that the spirit of the team - normally high, he said - has not carried over to the games.
One clip of a frustrated Embiid during the loss to the Heat made the rounds on social media, appearing to back up Brown's assertion about the team's spirit.
On Tuesday, Al Horford said there were locker room issues being handled internally.
"There's some stuff going on in our locker room," he said. "We'll keep that internal."
Some have downplayed the quote, as all teams manage issues throughout the season. Yet clearly, the Sixers are going through some strife.
They'll have to figure out themselves
The trade deadline came and went on Thursday, and the Sixers only made fringe moves, adding two wings in Glenn Robinson III and Alec Burks in a trade with the Golden State Warriors.
It didn't appear that the Sixers were interested in breaking up their core of Embiid, Simmons, Horford, Tobias Harris, and Josh Richardson, but they also didn't make any bigger moves to add more shooting or ball-handling.
In short: there is no outside help coming. The Sixers will have to figure it out themselves.
Injuries have played a part in their up-and-down play. Richardson, a crucial piece to their offense because of his shooting and ability to attack off the dribble, has been out since January 22. Embiid missed time with his hand injury, allowing the Sixers to play smaller, with Simmons dictating more of the action. When Embiid returned, they had to mix things up again.
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Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons' fit on offense remains a work in progress.
Questions remain about Embiid and Simmons' fit, but the two have made it work before. The addition of Horford has cramped spacing, but he gets open looks from three when he spaces the floor. Horford, Harris, and Richardson are all shooting below their career averages from deep. If they revert back to their usual percentages, things could open up.The Sixers remain a threat in the East, simply because of all of their talent. Despite the recent skid, they're only four games behind Miami for fourth place.
However, with the All-Star break nearing, the team doesn't seem any closer to figuring itself out and team morale seems to be in a dangerous place.
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I asked @JoelEmbiid if the players are still listening to #Sixers coach Brett Brown. Here's his response: pic.twitter.com/6EN8ACjrYv
- Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) February 5, 2020If the sixers get first round out, i wouldn't be surprised if Embiid does a trade request pic.twitter.com/Q05gf0ogBI
- 𝙎𝙡𝙤𝙬 ²⁰🐍 (@IcyWinslow) February 4, 2020